On Monday, October 5th, Greg Lui, a Chinese-American man from California who is accused of smuggling $300 million worth of chips to China, appeared in a federal court in Los Angeles. Lui, who is the CEO of a tech company and resides in the city of San Gabriel in Los Angeles County, pleaded not guilty to the charges and his defense attorney requested bail using three properties valued at approximately $1.5 million as collateral.
According to the US Department of Justice, the 38-year-old Lui, also known as Yiu Kong Lui, was arrested by the FBI last Thursday on charges of conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act, smuggling goods out of the country, and money laundering. The federal grand jury alleged that he smuggled GPU chips produced in the United States to China, valued at over $300 million, which are products subject to US export controls.
In court on Monday afternoon, Lui appeared in prison attire, handcuffs, and ankle restraints under escort by marshals. He looked back multiple times, nodding and making eye contact with two Chinese women in the audience. The two women were seen in tears, with one of them crying and choking at one point.
When asked if they were Lui’s family members, the women denied it and refused to comment. However, during the trial, when the defense attorney mentioned Lui’s family, he gestured towards the audience seating.
During the trial, Lui pleaded not guilty to the charges. His defense attorney Kevin Lally requested bail from the judge, emphasizing that Lui has been living in the US for 19 years, in a three-generation household with his parents, siblings, wife, and children, with no risk of “flight” or “threat to the community,” and that he has naturalized as a US citizen.
Based on this, the defense attorney informed the judge that Lui is willing to use three properties totaling approximately $1.5 million to $1.6 million as collateral for bail.
After hearing the statements, the judge agreed to accept the properties as collateral for bail and requested the defense to submit asset verification and relevant documents within the next week. Once the bail conditions and related documentation are completed, Lui will be allowed to post bail.
At the same time, the judge ordered Lui to surrender his passport and all travel documents. If bail is granted, he must strictly adhere to multiple conditions, including not possessing or using firearms, not engaging in large asset transfers, obtaining prior approval for outings, and not using virtual currency accounts.
Until the submission of documents and verification is confirmed, Lui will remain in custody.
According to the indictment presented by the federal grand jury on September 29th, Lui’s company Earthmade Computer Inc. is a tech company located in the City of Industry in Southern California.
The indictment states that between 2023 and 2024, Lui and his co-conspirators, under the guise of the company, purchased and exported controlled items to China without obtaining the required export license from the US Department of Commerce. To circumvent the permit requirements, Lui and his accomplices provided false documents to US manufacturers, falsely claiming that the products would be shipped to approved end-users and destinations. They first shipped these items to countries like Malaysia and Singapore that do not require such export licenses, and then illegally diverted them to China.
Prosecutors allege that from January to October 2024, Earthmade received over $176 million from two transportation companies located in Malaysia.
The indictment reveals that Lui was aware that US government regulations prohibit the export of such high-tech products to China in order to safeguard US national security and diplomatic policy interests, yet he proceeded with his plan.
John E. Helsing, head of the Western Field Office of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), emphasized the importance of preventing controlled technology from being illegally exported, stating that these technologies are crucial for maintaining the military advantage of the US and must be prevented from falling into the hands of adversaries.
The indictment represents only allegations. If found guilty of all charges, Lui could face a maximum statutory sentence of up to 20 years for conspiracy, 20 years for money laundering, and 10 years for smuggling.